Destined with You (2023)

Let Loose and Have Some Fun. Don’t take it too seriously

Entertaining concept. Handsome men in suits (Seriously Rowoon in a suit is immaculate). A fun likable female lead. A brooding rich male lead. And you got yourself a hit. Good chemistry between the characters. It’s a fun little drama with a lot of hilarity and swooning moments. But don’t take it too seriously. It’s not meant to be at the Oscars, but it wasn’t made for that anyways. Some people take morality a little too seriously in a fantasy drama. As long as the main characters are dedicated to each other, that’s all I care about. It’s fun, and supernatural and a little slice of romance. Take it for what it is.

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The series gets repetitive with no real plot

The drama is interesting at first but begins to get repetive from episode 3 onwards. The ML keeps repeating how he doesn’t want to fall in love with the FL but keeps approaching her. His lines are so repetive that it becomes irritating to watch.

Both of 2nd FL and ML serve no real purpose except as sidekicks whom we already know will not end up with the FL and the ML.

The colleagues in the civil service office, and even the ML’s parents, play filler roles because are not close to either the FL or the ML, so the FL and ML exist in a vacuum.

This drama already has the usual kdrama setup and tropes, and they are excuted quite poorly, which is a shame because both leads are considered good actors.

The usual :
1. Both ML and FL have existing partners/love interests, gradually develop feelings for each other while denying them.

2. 2nd FL and ML, who do not end up with the ML and FL but try to be.

3.. Side stories involving people at the workplace, usually involving a comic relief, nasty boss, gossipy colleagues, or the FL’s BFF

4. Accidental kisses, falling over each other, etc

I hope the drama picks up from now on. I like Jo Bo-ah, but even then the constant repetitive lines when they are bickering are just too irritating.

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No depth despite 16 Episodes

Since Rowoon was so convincing as ML in "She would never know" and "the kings affection", I expected a lot. The story line around the love spells would have provided many opportunities, but it was not clear to me when or when not, why or why not they were effective. What was left was a lame love story with no chemistry, in which the ML struggled to find emotional depth without succeeding at least in parts. The dialogues are cliché and miss any opportunity for real engagement. Clichees can play an important role in a story, but this opportunity was also missed. The story, the characters and their motives did not become plausible. I know "100 days my prince" from the screenwriter, which I liked. The cast with the supporting actors has already proven how good they are in many dramas. Too bad!

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A Bloody Hand of Fate Facilitates Love

The story starts with a bloody hand molesting the face of the ML. We later learn it is a curse stemming from some indiscretion in his past life. This made for an interesting start but the story wasn’t as intriguing as expected. This series turned out to be your typical K-drama romance with a bit of sorcery thrown in.

The leads were the saving grace of the series as all the storylines were somewhat messy. Rowoon and Bo-ah Jo looked beautiful together and had wonderful chemistry. Their characters, Shin -yu and Hong-Jo, not only had great chemistry and thus were believable as a couple but were interesting on their own. Shin-yu was smart, funny and caring. And Hong-Jo was passionate about her work, fun -loving, vibrant and intelligent. They were a perfect match as their bickering had just as much chemistry as their kisses. They had some really hilarious moments, but could also be passionate and loving with each other. Moreover, they both, at times, could be annoying and make really stupid decisions but still remained likable.

Though for a while there was the question as to whether Shin-yu’s feelings for Hong-Jo were real or due to the love spell she had cast, it was clear to me that he had an interest in her before a spell was even thought about. The love story in the present was well written and tied nicely to the past, but the story struggled with incorporating the side characters in an interesting manner. The office bullying and romance was boring as was the drama with the SFL. The corruption storyline could’ve been better, but played as if the writers needed something to fill the minutes not focused on the leads.

The stalker storyline would’ve been okay if the story had been better written, but the series implied that he was practicing sorcery. However, it was never apparent whether his spells worked. Moreover he was an individual who was apart of the leads’ past life but his role in their past life was never tied to the present. This was a missed opportunity and a major plot hole.

I did enjoy the budding relationship between the ML’s mom and his BFF. I didn’t need to see them start a romance, and they didn’t. Thank goodness. But I liked the confidence he inspired within her. It’s too bad she decided to stay with her verbally abusive husband instead of divorcing him.

Despite the weakness in some of the storylines, I enjoyed this series. Rowoon and Bo-ah Jo were fantastic in this. I could feel the happiness, the heart break and the love between their characters. This was all due to them giving their all in every scene. Their characters had some awesome hugs and smoldering kisses and one of the best sex scenes I’ve seen in a K-drama in a while.

This show was far from perfect. Nonetheless it was enjoyable and one that I will rewatch.

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Vidas passadas e mais do mesmo.

Jo Bo Ah e Ron Woon arrasaram neste drama. Ela simplesmente arrasa em atuação e não deixa passar nada em detalhes dos personagens que ela apresenta, realmente sou muito fã dela e ele é fantástico e eximiu profissional que não deixa a atuação pesada e representa muito seus personagens.

Esse drama é fantástico me prendeu do início ao fim e a cada episódio me sentia ansiosa e eu acho que a atuação do casal principal faz isso com a gente independente dos cortes, posso dizer que o diretor foi malvado. 
A história é de fantasia e traz ali a revelação de alguns crimes e problemas psicológicos de um Assassino bem esquisito e perturbado. Sou fã de damas que tenham uma pitada de ação e coisas da realidade e apesar também de tratar de vidas passadas trouxe temas atuais, um pouco de misticismo religioso misturado, mas dá para entender mesmo sendo nega e em resumo é ótimo todo o desfecho, hoje, beijos e os momentos do casal e também a história eterna dos coadjuvantes que nós temos de trabalho fofoca e principalmente sobre divórcio e a pressão diária das nossas vidas.
Ficou no formato interessante e com bastante efeitos especiais, apesar de trazer então temática repetitiva tem os seus elementos de surpresa.

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the female lead gave me second hand embarrassment

at first the story doesn’t seem that bad with the cliches of past lives and stuff but the female lead just got on my nerves soo much . Now a days kdramas are about strong and smart female charecters. But here the fl didn’t seem to have any self respect or common sence whatsoever. and also I couldn’t really feel any chemistry between the leads. It didn’t even look like the ML was falling is love, It just looked like he was doing all that against his will . and then suddenly confesses his love. and then again saying it had nothing to do with the potion was weird. and the ML technically was cheating on his then girlfriend. They tried to cover it up by making that girlfriend a cheater as well, otherwise the ML would’ve been bashed for it. anyways i rearly have kdramas soo much

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In need of better writers

"Destined with you" suffered due to it's subpar writing.
The plot was intriguing and fun but the way the episodes were written was so done messily the viewers didn't have time to really sympathise with the protagonists/fully engage. But the superficiality of the script was saved by some funny moments and ... the actors. To my surprise despite the negative comments I've heard, Rowoon so a joy to watch, he never felt awkward and he excelled in comedic scenes.

Despite not being a great drama I didn't really find it boring, I only felt pity that it could have been so much more.
Still, not a bad watch 6.5/10

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A Love Story Forged Across Time

This drama is like a rollercoaster ride of emotions! It's got this epic love story between Jang Sin Yu and Hong Jo, with tons of sparks flying. There's a messy ex-fiancée in the mix too!
Their past-life connection adds a whole new layer of mystery, and the flashbacks are seriously intriguing. It's like they were destined to be together, no matter what.
There's also hilarious moments with Hong Jo's coworkers that had me cracking up. Plus, the soundtrack is fantastic and the ending is super satisfying.
Overall, 'Destined With You' is a fun and romantic drama with a bit of everything. Definitely worth checking out!

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Strong Foundation But Still Managed To Lose Its Footing

I don't like the categories for rating on here. My 4 categories are Acting/Cast, Writing, Direction/SFX/Music, Entertainment Value.

I really had high hopes for this one. I love Rowoon (로운); I think he's a great actor. I saw some short clips of this drama that highlighted his portrayal of a quirky character in an unfortunate but comical situation. It seemed very charming. So despite my dislike for the female lead, I decided to give this drama a shot...

Acting/Cast: This is going to sound so harsh...honestly, the only positive in this category is Rowoon (로운), the male lead...and even he struggled. I don't know if it's his fault or the writing or the direction or all of the above, but he couldn't hold the character. It was such a unique character, too, with an extremely distinct personality and it just...fizzled away as the drama progressed. I would catch glimpses of his former self here and there but it only served as a depressing reminder of what once was. Jo Ba Ah (조보아), who played the female lead, wasn't any better. I had really disliked her after watching her ruin Tale of the Nine-Tailed with her horrible acting. At least she had improved in this drama. I was surprised that she wasn't the reason this drama failed. The villains - all three of them - are lame. The side characters tried so hard to be likeable and they just couldn't pull it off. Oh, I almost forgot about that poor 2nd male lead... a K-drama pet peeve of mine -- disrespected 2nd male leads. 1/10

Writing: I'm so sick of the "we loved each other in a past life" trope. It's so over done. It's seriously becoming another huge K-drama pet peeve of mine. The writing and plot started out strong. It was an interesting premise with a dark, ominous undertone. Unfortunately, this all goes away pretty early on in the drama and it just becomes a boring, typical romance...with a stalker cliche. I think it fizzles out around episode 8 or 9. Ugh...the beginning was so good...I'm so disappointed... 4/10

Direction/SFX/Music: This drama does have good cinematography and production quality. This is definitely the strongest category. The OST is decent. Direction though, I did not agree with. Going from unique, quirky, cute, with some creepy and even adult vibes to a cookie-cutter romance. I forgot the ending. It's only been a few days and I already forgot. That's how unimpressed I was. 6/10

Entertainment Value: Getting through the 1st episode wasn't quick for me. I don't know if it was the drama or me. However, after the 1st episode, I really got into the story. I was excited to watch it. I really loved the male lead's character and the dynamic between the 2 leads. I thought the plot itself was very engaging. Then, I reached the 2nd half of the drama and as I continued watching to the end, I experienced all the hope within me slowly shrivel up and die. 4/10

Now I'm sad.
Overall, I gave this drama a 4/10 due to the complete disregard for the solid foundation that had been established in the beginning of the drama.

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Podia ter sido melhor

Então, vou ser honesta. Eu estava bem empolgada pra assistir esse porque recebi recomendação.
O início foi bem intrigante e parecia que a história ia seguir pra outro lado. O problema é que os primeiros 7 episódios são extremamente frustrantes porque faz um caminho inverso de separar os protagonistas ao invés de uni-los. A química dos protagonistas é ótima e eu simplesmente não consigo me cansar de olhar pro Ro Woon, considerando que além de ser lindíssimo é um ator de primeira.
Eu apenas fiquei frustrada com todo aquele plot da poção do amor. Foi difícil não achar que a protagonista foi extremamente egoísta, e ainda mais porque aquela poção culminou em um stalker assassino mais pra frente. Quer dizer, ela gostava de um cara que rejeitou ela e então decide apelas pra uma poção do amor em que os sentimentos da outra pessoa não seriam "reais"?
Além de tudo isso, o protagonista tinha namorada e ele simplesmente demorou muito pra terminar com a menina, o que deixou um gosto ruim na boca, pois parecia que estava havendo traição da parte dele, ainda que a menina estivesse traindo ele com outro cara.
No início eu achei que o plot iria seguir uma vibe mais "mística", o que realmente se concretizou com todo o plot sobre as vidas passadas (os nossos protagonistas se amavam em uma vida passada, mas tiveram um fim trágico). A maldição foi um grande problema no início, mas depois ficou meio que de lado e foi resolvida muito facilmente (mas pra ser justa, fez sentido e foi esperado).
Também não explicaram como que o principal antagonista (a assassino) também tinha conhecimento sobre essas coisas de xamãs. O cara simplesmente ficava fazendo os feitiços e etc sem nunca ter tido um contato prévio com a personagem. Ficou muito aleatório.
Eu também não consegui sentir nenhuma empatia pelas colegas de trabalho da Hong-Jo. Elas excluíram ela em todos os momentos e no fim todo mundo ficou amiguinho. Também não me importei com o segundo casal que foi formado entre os chefes dela. Enfim, os personagens secundários foram bem descartáveis na minha opinião, menos a Eun-Wol, que era realmente interessante, apesar de eu não entender onde ela se encaixava em tudo que aconteceu.

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